SVB’s disgraced ex-CEO is now holidaying in Hawaii

Former CEO of SVB, Gregory Becker, has been pictured sauntering through the streets of Lahaina, a beachside resort, where he owns a condo.

Wearing shorts, sunglasses and flip-flops, Becker’s image is at odds with the scene back in California. SVB imploded this time last week after depositors tried to withdraw $42 billion from the institution. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) took over the bank at the weekend, before colleagues at the New York Department of Financial Services leapt into action and took possession of Signature Bank on Sunday.

The impact of the run on the bank has been wide-ranging. Investors have millions of dollars tied up in the embattled institution, small businesses are wondering if they can cover their payroll, and a lack of confidence in the wider banking sector has potentially had a knock-on impact on other institutions.

Debate is also raging over whether President Biden was right to step in and guarantee a backstop for deposits with the bank beyond the $250,000 benchmark –with the Federal Reserve insisting taxpayers wouldn’t front the fallout of SVB’s $220 billion-worth of uninsured assets.

Becker, who has served as CEO of SVB for 12 years, has been among a raft of individuals blamed for the bank’s collapse. Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary blasted the firm’s “idiot management”—a charge echoed by members of staff at the institution who dubbed Becker’s decision-making as “absolutely idiotic”.

Speaking to CNN, an anonymous member of staff said they were dumbfounded that Becker had publicly acknowledged the state the organization was in before securing any financial safety net. The staffer added: “It’s the exact opposite of what you’d normally see in a scandal. But their transparency and forthright-ness did them in.”

Becker has also caught the attention of the authorities after he sold shares in SVB worth nearly $30 million over the past two years—with deals going through in the days before the bank disclosed a $1.8 billion loss on a portfolio sold to Goldman Sachs. Becker’s sale of $3.6 million worth of shares went through on Feb. 27 according to figures from Smart Insider, selling at prices ranging from $287 a share to $598 a share.

He’s not the only one—reports from CNBC…